distracted drivers

The California Highway Patrol’s (CHP) Valley Division and Golden Gate Divisions, having jurisdiction over the Sacramento regions and San Francisco Bay Area, are partnering with the Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) to participate in an “I-80 Challenge.”

This effort aims to reduce distracted and reckless driving along the 615 miles of Interstate 80 from San Francisco, Calif. to the Nevada/Utah Stateline from Monday, August 27 – Labor Day, September 3, 2018, by enhancing traffic safety, enforcement, and education along this section of the National Highway System.

A joint law enforcement campaign in Nevada will be focusing on distracted drivers on the state's roads from November 2 to 13 in an attempt to reduce deaths caused by drivers who are texting or making phone calls while behind the wheel.

In the first half of 2016, traffic deaths in the country rose 10.4 percent over 2015, meaning 1,665 more deaths in just six months. That follows a 7 percent increase in deaths the prior year.

On April 7 and April 20, officers from the South Lake Tahoe Police Department, El Dorado County Sheriff's Office and California Highway Patrol will be especially vigilant for distracted drivers on local roads as part of a joint effort across the state.

Although the officers' goals are not to write as many citations as possible, sometimes citations are necessary for drivers to understand the importance of focusing on their driving.

Distracted driving is such an important safety issue that April is recognized as National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.

Fact. Research has found that using a cell phone behind the wheel makes a driver four times more likely to get into a crash serious enough to cause injury.

Fact. When sending or receiving text messaging behind the wheel, a driver’s eyes are off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, equivalent to driving the length of a football field at 65 miles per hours.

Fact. The likelihood of crashes dramatically rise when your actions require a combination of visual, manual and cognitive attention

April 1st starts the month long zero tolerance campaign “It’s Not Worth It!” to highlight the fact that drivers who text and use cell phones while driving have the same driving behavior as those who are legally drunk. South Lake Tahoe California Highway Patrol officers will join others from around the state in an effort to curb these behaviors in order to reduce preventable accidents with injuries.